Western Stima will be looking to pull out of the drop zone when they host fellow relegation candidates Vihiga United at A.S.K Grounds, Nakuru, in the early kick-off of the Nakuru double-header later today.Stima come into this game in high spirits after edging out AFC Leopards in a five-goal thriller in their previous match at Nakuru while Vihiga arrive into it after collecting an important point against Nairobi City Stars at the same venue.Both teams have been staging their home games at Nakuru following the restrictions imposed by the government in their respective home counties and thus both of them will be home away from home.📈| @WesternStima_fc and @VihigaUnitedFC on the Log ahead of their clash in Nakuru#BKPL pic.twitter.com/AppWh9nOqP— Betking Kenya Premier League (@Officialfkfpl) July 24, 2021 This will be an important match for Vihiga who will be looking for their first-ever win in this encounter since attaining premier league status.In the three meetings between these two teams, Stima have won only once with the other two encounters ending in draws, a one-all draw in their first-ever meeting in the top tier, and a barren draw in their latest meeting in the first leg of the current campaign.A win for Stima will see them move to 24 points, leapfrogging Nzoia United into the 14th place albeit temporarily while a win for Vihiga will see them move to 20 points, just one point off Stima on the log.⭐| @WesternStima_fc is your Club of the week for Matchday 27#BKPL pic.twitter.com/VFBekT8bdN— Betking Kenya Premier League (@Officialfkfpl) July 23, 2021 Western Stima head coach Juma Abdalla says he is out to get maximum points against Vihiga but admits that it will be a tricky match as Mike Mururi’s side is also fighting for survival thus they will put up a very spirited fight.“It is a very tricky game because we are playing a team that is equally fighting relegation and they will come all out looking for the points and so we have to prepare well and execute our game plan excellently. I know their style of play, they mainly do power play and so we will counter it with our own style to make it difficult for them,” he told Mozzart Sport.Babu believes that a win today will ease their relegation fears with just six games left to play till the end of the season.He also notes that his players understand the task at hand today and has issued a rallying call to them to get the job done.“This is a very important game for us because I believe that if we get a win it will give us some breathing space and it also eases our fears of being relegated. The players understand how important this game is for us and I trust them to give their best to win. We are fighting relegation because we started the season badly. But for me, how you start is not important, it’s how you end the season is what matters and we are doing it strongly,” he concluded.🧢|Juma Abdallah of @WesternStima_fc Is your Coach of the week for Matchday 27#BKPL pic.twitter.com/bJjxoLvtxt— Betking Kenya Premier League (@Officialfkfpl) July 23, 2021 Stima’s main undoing has been their leaking defence that has soaked in 47 goals, the most by any team in the league this season. Vihiga have not been any better either, conceding 34 goals in 26 matches.While Stima have not been bad in their striking department, scoring 29 goals, Vihiga have the worst scoring record in the league this season and have only managed ten goals all season.A loss for Mururi’s side would give more survival hopes to Mathare United who have been at the bottom of the log for the longest time this season and have played one game less than both Stima and Vihiga, and are only six and two points apart respectively.
